Entangled Soul
by jms6548
Summary: Evey Brent gets the surprise of her life when she jumps into a certain mysterious well after a certain mysterious girl. Unfortunately, she bumps her head and doesn't wake up until Kagome is long gone- leaving her to explore this strange new world on her o
1. Into the Well

**Author's Note:** _Hello! As the story description states, this is going to be a fic about a young girl who follows Kagome through the well and ends up encountering a certain Lord of the Western Lands. Ahoy, I see romance on the horizon! The really, really, really distant horizon, to be clear. As I want to keep everyone in-character- particularly the oh-so-stoic Sesshomaru- and I can't exactly see him falling madly in love with a human, especially one as annoying and chirpy as Evey, this is going to be a very slow-blooming love story. However, I promise to try and make the build-up as realistic, entertaining, and enjoyable as my humble writing skills will allow._

 _Here is a little background to set the scene: I am making Kagome just a little older (about 2-3 years) then she first appears in the anime, so that she is closer in age to Evey, who is 17. Evey is an American transfer student who is spending a semester in Japan, and she befriended Kagome during her first week at her new school. The girls are in high school right now. This story is set later on in the anime- although that isn't too important, save for the fact that Naraku is still alive and kicking, and the Shikon Jewel has not been made whole yet; Inuyasha, Kagome and co. are still searching for jewel shards. There will be other villains of my own creation, but I find Naraku just so creepy and well-written that I can't bear to write a story that doesn't feature him as an antagonist._

 _With that said, enjoy my little story! Reviews and constructive criticism are very much appreciated! And if you spot any mistakes- grammatical, or mistakes regarding characterization, continuity, or anything else- please do not be shy about letting me know so that I can correct my errors!_

 **Disclaimer:** _No, I do not own Inuyasha (but how cool would it be if I did?). Maybe one day..._

Chapter 1: Into the Well

I wasn't _trying_ to snoop. Really. Honest.

But you have to admit, it was kind of weird. Kagome Higurashi- and her grandfather, weirdly enough- could rattle off a list of her many illnesses without missing a beat, but then whenever I actually saw her she looked perfectly fine. No back-bending osteoporosis, swollen feet, broken bones, raging herpes, and whatever else she had been 'out' with.

In fact, she looked better than fine. Healthier, actually. She was slim and fit- her legs were ridiculously toned, and I was _so_ jealous- and she had become an absolute beast in gym class. Her behavior had changed, too; sometimes she'd just be staring off into space, lost in thought and totally oblivious to the world around her, or even talking to herself. I swear that on at least four occasions I'd heard her mutter 'sit!' under her breath, to no one in particular.

Oh, sorry. I should explain how I know all this stuff. I'm not stalking her, I swear. Although I am following her around with a video camera right now, and she has no idea that I'm behind her. I know that looks pretty bad, but it's all perfectly innocent. Promise.

I guess I should explain. My name's Evelyn- Evey, for short- and Kagome is- or was- my 'introduction buddy.' I'm an American, grew up in the States and transferred to Tokyo as part of a senior student exchange program about two months ago. It had seemed like a good idea at the time; I had pretty much mastered the language, and I've always adored traveling, so coming to a new school in a new country had seemed like it might be pretty cool.

And it was pretty cool, more or less. Sure, I got really, _really_ confused about the currency rates every now and then- my first time buying a cup of coffee, I had accidentally overpaid by about fifty dollars- and sometimes I forgot a word or two, but that was all to be expected. What I had not expected was my new school uniform. I mean, seriously. _Seriously._ These stupid green skirts are just _so not cool._ At least twice a day some sinister breeze turns an otherwise normal, nondescript moment into a frantic- and not always successful- battle to hide my, er, lady parts from the clear and unobstructed view of anyone within fifty feet.

The other not-so-cool part of this little adventure was the fact that my introduction buddy- Kagome Higurashi, the afore-mentioned stalkee, who had been assigned to be my 'guide' around this foreign town- was never around. She had showed me around school, made sure I had all my books and things, and we had hung out several times. But even then, she had tended to disappear for a day or two- heck, sometimes six or seven- at a time, with her grandpa claiming that she was grievously ill, and then out of nowhere she'd be back at school and totally fine.

I mean, it was _weird_. I'd tried talking to her about it a few times, but the conversations hadn't exactly been informative. They'd gone something a little like:

"Gee, Kagome, I heard you were out sick again. But you look fine…"

"Oh, yeah. Uh, it was, let me think, pneumonia! Yeah, really bad pneumonia. Boy, am I glad I'm feeling better."

"Pneumonia? But doesn't that put kids in the hospital for a really long time? You were only gone for two days."

"Oh, well, it wasn't _that bad_ of pneumonia. It was a pretty mild case."

"Oh. But… you just said it was really bad. And where did you get those bruises? And that nasty cut on your arm? And-"

"What?! Yeah, coming! Sorry, Evey, I think I hear, uh, someone calling my name. Gotta go, catch you later!"

And then she'd run off before I had a chance to push any further. I was totally perplexed by the whole situation- clearly she wasn't sick all the time. I mean, come on. Last week her grandpa had announced that her appendix had burst, but then three days later she was back in class and mopping the floor with our poor peers in a game of volleyball. I'm sorry, but people whose appendixes have just burst do _not_ play- and win, no less- volleyball tournaments. Nuh-uh, no way.

I was so going to get to the bottom of this. She was hiding something, and I was determined to find out what. Not in like a creepy, paranoid, obsessed way, mind you- I'm really just concerned. It seems like every time I see her in class, she's got a fresh bruise or bandage or something. Whatever's going on, she's getting hurt, and I am definitely not okay with that.

So yes, I'm kind of following her right now with a video camera in my hand, and I realize that looks bad, but it's all perfectly understandable. I was sitting on a park bench, see, working on a project for our science class- I had to videotape and take notes on the life cycle of different kinds of flowers, which is just _so_ boring- when Kagome had rushed past me. And no, she didn't see me because I was crouched in a bush with my video camera, but that's not as creepy as it sounds. I was videotaping some boring old flowers, not her. But then I saw her rushing off, throwing glances over her shoulders, with her backpack bulging, and I decided that following my friend would be decidedly more interesting than watching a dumb flower grow. Because, seriously. Have you ever watched a flower grow? Trust me, it's pretty dull. It basically just sits there. So, so boring.

I'd only been following her for a few minutes, camera at my side and backpack slung loosely over one shoulder. Turns out that stalking people is actually pretty exciting- every time she stopped to look around and see if she was being followed, I had to dive into a bush or behind a tree or something. Yes, I felt ridiculous, and yes, I had twigs and leaves sticking out of my hair. But I was determined to find out where she was sneaking off to, and no measly bushes were going to stop me.

It's when her house comes into view that I began to feel not only super creepy but also super dumb. Suspicious or not, Kagome was apparently just going home. I sighed and was about to call out her name when she glanced at the house and, adjusting her backpack, turned to walk past it. I cocked my head to the side, wondering where she could be going, and side-stepped to watch from behind behind a blooming cherry blossom tree. I continued to watch as she jogged up the steps of the old Higurashi shrine and, looking around one final time to make sure she hadn't been followed, stepped inside and slid the door shut behind her.

"What the…" I muttered, starting forward again. I had just about reached the shrine steps when an eerie purple light glowed from behind the doors. I paused a moment, then rubbed my eyes. "Kagome?" I called hesitantly. Surely I was imagining things.

There was no answer, and abruptly the light vanished. I hesitated for a second, then mounted the steps and tentatively slid the heavy old door open.

Empty. The shrine was totally empty, save for some broken boards and an ancient, crumbling stone well right in the center of the room. I blinked against the darkness, baffled. Where on earth had she gone?

"Kagome?" I called again, propping the door open wide and then inching forward into the gloomy room. "Are you in here?" Well, that was certainly a dumb question. Of course she was in here, I'd just seen her walk through the door.

But… well, where was she? This place wasn't exactly chock-full of hiding places. There was only one door, and all the windows had been boarded up long ago. My eyes landed on the well. Surely she wasn't… she couldn't be… _in the well_.

I stepped up to the well's stony sides and peered down into its blackness. Totally empty. Okay, this was starting to get kind of creepy. "Kagome?" My voice echoed a handful of times and I shivered, suddenly wanting very much to get out of this place. "Kagome, this isn't funny! Where are you?"

My eyes were slowly adjusting to the gloom, though I couldn't quite see to the bottom of the well. How far down did it go? And what was at the bottom? Water? Mud? My friend? I swallowed tightly. Kagome didn't seem like the kind of person who enjoyed jumping into ancient, abandoned wells- come to think of it, I have no idea what kind of person enjoys doing that- but I really couldn't think of any other explanation for her disappearance. I glanced around the shrine again, chewing my lower lip anxiously. There wasn't anywhere else for her to have gone. There just… _wasn't_.

I opened my mouth to call for her again- though I didn't know what good it would do, it wasn't like she had answered any of my other calls- when a glint from the depths of the well's blackness caught my eye. I squinted down at it and leaned over, furrowing my brow. What the heck was that thing?

It was small, and round, and kind of a silvery-white color. And it was gleaming. Metal? Maybe someone's jewelry? I couldn't quite tell.

After a long minute, I heaved a resigned sigh and tightened my grip on the stone mouth. Kagome was- had to be, weird as it was- down there somewhere, and I wanted to know just what that weird silver thing was.

"Am I really going to do this?" I asked myself aloud. Climb into a dark, abandoned old well in the middle of an empty shrine, after someone who may or may not be at the bottom? Despite the spiders and bugs and goodness knows what else was probably in there?

But what was my other option? Turn around and leave, and maybe not see Kagome again for another week? Never know where she had gone, or what that thing in the well was? Never figure out what was going on with my friend?

I inhaled deeply and steeled myself, overwhelmed by a sudden rush of courage. Was I really going to climb into this black, ominous pit? Why, yes. Yes I was.

I shoved by video camera into my backpack and, making sure it was tightly sealed, hoisted myself carefully over the stone edge. I braced both hands against either side of the opening and, gritting my teeth with the effort, began to slowly ease myself downwards. The stones weren't slippery, thank goodness, and they provided little ledges and handholds that helped my descent.

A few feet down, the back of my neck started to prickle. I froze, suddenly feeling a sense of dread, though I had no idea why. Actually, it felt like... like... someone was watching me. I swallowed tightly and looked to my right and left, but there was nothing- just hard gray stones and patches of brown dirt. The dim light from the mouth of the well, which was just a few feet above my head, suddenly seemed to darken.

I licked my suddenly dry lips. Was it just me, or had it suddenly gotten really cold? Like, really, _really_ cold, and there was definitely a stream of fog pouring out of my open mouth every time I took a breath. I shivered, all of my previous feelings of courage and determination gone. This had been such a bad idea. What was wrong with me, climbing into an abandoned well all by myself? Was I insane? It was time to _go_.

But I couldn't seem to make my hands move. I'd like to tell you that it wasn't because I was literally frozen with fear, but... well, it was.

Somehow, I made my head move. Slowly, mechanically, I twisted it to the side, turning my eyes downwards, looking towards the bottom of the well... My jaw dropped in a wordless, soundless gasp. That silver thing, that awful thing that had piqued my curiosity... I could see it clearly now. Way, _way_ to clearly.

Embedded in the dark mud at the bottom of this stupid, awful hole was an eye. A big silver eye, oblivious to the dirt packed tightly around it, and it was _looking at me_ and holy crap it was _so_ time to get out of here.

I stared at the thing for a wild minute, my heart pounding in my ears. An eye. There was an eye. In the ground. Watching me. An _eye._ It blinked, and that jolted me into action; I snapped my head up and, with impressive speed if I do say so myself, scrambled to grab at the stones above me. I hoisted myself up once, twice, nearly slipped, and managed to breathlessly latch one hand onto the rim of the well. I heaved upwards, kicking wildly with both feet to add momentum, and pulled myself up and over the edge.

Somewhere in the back of my frantic mind, the fact that the door was closed- and that I had _definitely_ left it open, because what kind of lunatic would lock herself in an abandoned shrine?- registered. I was just starting to ponder the implications of that thought when a rush of icy wind hit me, and an enourmous face materialized out of thin air just inches in front of me.

I had just an instant to register the image- blood-red eyes, wild dark hair, huge, _huge_ teeth that looked razor-sharp- before I screamed and lurched backwards, loosing my hold on the stones.

"No!" I cried helplessly, trying unsuccessfully to grab onto something, anything, as I fell back into the dark hole. The back of my head hit something hard, and a curious kind of numbness took over my body. Everything grew foggy and then, quite suddenly, I saw a soft purple light illuminate the stones around me.

"Wh...what..." I tried to mumble, but my voice slurred. The mud beneath me felt cold and hard, but I didn't remember my body making impact with it.

"Wha..." I tried again, struggling to lift my head, but it felt so heavy and warm, and suddenly the whole world was spinning. And then, quite suddenly, everything went black.


	2. The Curse

**Disclaimer:** Nope, I still don't own Inuyasha.

Chapter 2: The Curse

So. Yeah. This pretty much sucked.

Those were my first coherent thoughts as I groggily pried my eyes open. A square of bright sunlight from directly above made me squeeze my eyes shut again and then, very slowly, ease them back open. I sat up, my movements sluggish, and looked around. Stones. Dirt. Ew, a spider. Where on earth...

Oh yeah. The well. It was all coming back now- Kagome disappearing, the shrine, the well, that freaky eye, the- _that freaky eye!_ I gave a girlish shriek and leaped to my feet, looking at the ground frantically for any sign of that weird... _thing._ I relaxed a little when, after careful observation, I deduced that the _eye in the freaking ground_ was no longer present.

In fact... I rubbed my aching head wearily. Maybe I had just imagined it. And the sudden cold. And... and that awful face that had appeared out of nowhere and snapped at me with those big teeth... I felt dizzy again and sank to my knees in the dirt. Nope, definitely hadn't imaged _that_.

I knelt there on the warm ground for a few minutes, trying to digest all that had happened. I'd passed out, I guessed, and goodness knows how much time had passed between my fall and now. I glanced up again, at the blue sky and sunlight above me. It had been early afternoon when I'd started following Kagome home, and it was still light out, so maybe just an hour or two had passed. Although...

Hang on a second. Why could I see that sky? I was inside the shrine, which had a roof, so... I furrowed my brow. This was the weirdest day ever.

I shook my head and sighed, climbing to my feet now that the bout of dizziness had passed. "Kagome?" I called up, though I didn't expect to get an answer. If she was around, surely she would have come down to see if I was okay. Or maybe she had seen me lying down here, and had gone to get help? That thought perked me up; perhaps she was on her way back right now, with an ambulance in tow.

I peered up at the sky, straining my ears for... well, anything. A voice, a car engine, a door slamming... nothing. Although I did hear birds chirping, weirdly enough, which didn't really make sense since I was... um, indoors. Or at least, I had been.

Well, no sense in waiting around to be rescued- especially since I didn't even know if Kagome knew I was down here. Shaking off the remains of my grogginess, I braced my hands against the side of the well and started to climb. It wasn't hard, and within less than a minute I was poking my head above the top stones and scrambling to heave myself over them.

And what a sight greeted me.

The shrine was gone. The gloomy, broken-down room with its boarded-up windows and cobwebs was just... gone. Instead I was in a small, grassy field, with enormous trees swaying gently too and fro all around me. I staggered to my feet and gaped at the scenery, completely mystified.

I rubbed my eyes good and hard and then looked around again. Nope, no changes. Field, flowers, trees- all of it was still there. Alright, time for plan B; I started pinching myself, gently at first, but then with panicked urgency as I did not, in fact, wake up from some sort of weird, hit-my-head-on-a-rock-induced hallucination.

I finally let my arms- now covered in little red welts- fall to my sides. So. This wasn't a dream. This was real.

I wasn't quite sure what to make of that information. I mean... how exactly are you supposed to react when _entire frickin' buildings_ just up and vanish? The shrine, the Higurashi house... totally gone. Disappeared. Poof, no trace of them ever having been here.

I thought briefly about climbing back into the well- maybe there was a door or a hatch of some kind?- but dismissed the idea after a minute. That eye in the ground, and that horrible face snapping its teeth at me, had been at the well. I took a few steps away from it, shivering. Nope, not going back in there.

So that left... well, pretty much just one option; pick a direction and start walking. I did so, looking around constantly for recognizable landmarks, but with no such luck. No shrine, no houses, no fenced-in yards... no benches, no fire hydrants, no trash cans. I broke into a job, biting back a wave of panic. What on earth was going on?

I got lost before long- heck, I had been lost as soon as I had climbed out of the well- and as I wandered through the unfamiliar woods, calling out for somebody and searching for signs of civilization, the sun began to do down.

Well, now I just felt like crying. My head hurt, I was all dirty and sweaty, my stomach was growling, and I was about to be lost and alone in a logically non-existent woods in the middle of nowhere. _At night_. This day was the _worst_.

I continued trudging, and just as the sun went down and I was about to give into my urge to cry I heard a voice. A child's voice, it sounded like. It was calling for... someone. I perked up and, when it fell silent, yelled out, "Hello?! Who's there?!"

There was a pause. Then, "Lord Sesshomaru! I can't get out!"

Definitely a kid- a little girl, I thought. "I'm coming!" I called out, and started to run in what I hoped was the right direction. "Don't move, okay?!"

"Please, help me! I'm trapped!" the girl cried out again. She sounded like she was crying. A few breathless seconds later, I burst out of the woods and was greeted with the sight of grass, flowers, and... about a hundred yards away, the mouth of a large cave set into a surrounding rock formation. And, though she was just a dim silhouette in the fading daylight, I could see the little girl standing at the cave's entrance.

She saw me, too, as I ran towards her. "Please, hurry!" No need to state the obvious, kid, I thought as I drew nearer to her. Panting, I reached the cave and then paused, confused. She'd been calling for help, and I could make out the wet glisten of tears on her cheeks, but... well, she seemed totally fine. She was just standing there inside the cave.

"Are you lost?" I asked, walking closer and trying to catch my breath.

"Stop!" she cried suddenly, startling me. "You can't come any closer! There's a... a wall. It won't let Rin leave." She was starting to cry again.

"A... wall?" I repeated, stepping forwards tentatively. Um... maybe she was hallucinating? Delusional? I wasn't sure.

"Stop, please! Rin doesn't want you to be trapped, too," she looked up at me with enormous doe eyes. Who was she talking about? Was she referring to herself?

"Your name's Rin?" I asked gently, dropping to my knees. I wouldn't come any closer, since it seemed to be upsetting her, but we could at least be at eye level. "Is that right?" She nodded, and I tried to give a warm smile. "That's really pretty. My name's Evelyn, but everybody calls me Evey."

"H-hi," she said shyly, hiccuping.

"So," I leaned forward, trying to appear casual and unconcerned, "What were you saying about a wall?"

She sniffled and pointed to... er, nothing. Air. "It won't let Rin leave," she stated again.

"Okay..." I said slowly. I was lost, here. "Well... maybe if I come into the cave the, er, wall, won't stop _me_ from leaving," I suggested lamely. Her eyes widened with concern, but she said nothing. Well, that was all the permission I needed- I could just walk over and push- or carry- her back outside. "Here goes nothing."

I stood and took two confident steps forwards, landing me inside of the cave. Rin watched anxiously and I gave a little twirl to show that I was perfectly fine. "And now I'll just step back out, and-ooph!" What the...

I stepped back, rubbing my suddenly bruised nose. I felt like I'd walked into a brick wall. Rin gave a little moan and I discovered, to my great annoyance and confusion, that there was indeed some kind of... I don't even know. A freaking invisible wall that had apparently decided to hinder any and all attempts to leave the cave.

Not totally invisible, actually. I realized this while rushing to and fro, kicking at air- and getting quite a few bruises for my efforts- and trying to figure out just what exactly was blocking the exit. It was kind of like... shimmery blue air. You couldn't see anything if you were standing still, but then if you tried to push your way out the air rippled and gave off a funny glow.

After a few minutes I stepped back, hands on my hips, and glowered at... er, the air. This did not make sense. This _so_ did not make any tiny bit of logical, rational sense in any way.

"Rin warned you," the little girl said sadly, dropping into a crouch and hugging her knees to her chest. "Now we are both trapped." She sniffled again. Aww.

I fell to my knees, too. "Hey, don't cry. It'll be okay. Maybe... maybe it'll go away in a little while." I had no reason to think that, but this day sucked enough without adding a crying child to the mix. She shrugged a little bit, but didn't say anything.

I searched my mind for something to say, to distract her. "Um... hey, who was it that I heard you calling for? Lord Se-something?"

The change was instantaneous and remarkable; all signs of tears vanished, and her little face suddenly lit up with hope. "Lord Sesshomaru!" she chirped happily. "Rin knows he is out looking for her! He will know what to do about the wall."

"Aw, see? Everything will be just fine," I announced, though I had no idea if that in fact was true. After a moment's thought I asked, "Hey, Rin, do you happen to have any food in here? I haven't eaten since lunchtime..." She shook her head. Drat.

Silence resumed, and I took the time to explore the cave a little bit, to see if there was another exit. There's wasn't, unfortunately; in fact, the place wasn't as big as I had first thought. Maybe ten feet wide, and twenty deep, with absolutely nothing of interest in it. I sighed and dropped my backpack to the ground as Rin asked, "Lady Evey, are you a demon?"

Am I a... I twisted to face her, furrowing my brow. Was she joking? She certainly looked serious, and it wasn't a very funny thing to say to someone... "Um... no..."

"Oh." She cocked her head to one side, looking at me curiously. "But your hair is strange. And you look..." she hesitated a moment, and I got the feeling that she was trying not to offend me, "Different."

Oh. I had to stifle a laugh- she wasn't the first person in this country to comment on my blonde hair or fair complexion. Although, I thought, examining a piece of my chest-length hair, it had taken on a bit of a brownish hue. "I'm from the United States. My parents were both blonde, so I came out looking like this," I spread my hands wide and smiled to let her know that she hadn't offended me. Well, she had asked if I was a demon. That had been a first. But... maybe she had never seen a foreigner before? And... er, assumed that they were... demons? Hell if I knew.

She still seemed puzzled. "The... United States?" she repeated.

"Yeah." She furrowed her brow. "Um... of America," I elaborated. I guess she hadn't learned much geography yet. "It's a country to the west. It's really different from Japan."

"Oh." She gave me another head-tilt. "Rin has never heard of these United States. Does everyone there look like you, Lady Evey?"

I smiled. "You can just call me Evey, Rin. And no, some people there look like me, but people come in all shapes and sizes- just like they do in this country. In fact," I made myself comfortable on the ground as she listened attentively, "I have a big brother who doesn't look anything like me."

Suddenly Rin grew very still, and her big eyes grew wide as she looked at something behind me. I jumped to my feet and turned to see a woman, ancient and stooped, with scraggly wisps of hair sprouting from her head, watching us from outside the cave.

"Uh... hi," I called, giving a little wave.

The woman drew closer, eyeing me carefully. When she reached the mouth of the cave I started to call out a warning- all three of us getting trapped in here wouldn't solve anything, after all- but she ignored me and drew close.

"Now," she said, dry lips smacking together with a little 'pop,' "Who might you be?"

Rin was pressing herself into my legs. Was she hiding behind me? "I'm Evey," I answered slowly. She kept looking at me for a minute with sagging, bloodshot eyes. "You really shouldn't have come in here, you know," I warned her. "There's a... a wall that's keeping us from getting out." She didn't respond. After a minute I continued, "Go ahead, see for yourself." I nodded towards the shimmer of blue light behind her. "It won't let you out."

She gave a raspy chuckle. "Dear girl." There was a weird gleam in her eyes. I was suddenly very uneasy. "It's called a barrier. I would know; I'm the one who placed it." She chuckled again.

Oh. Well. "Um... okay." I licked my lips. "Do you think that maybe you could... um, get rid of it?" She just kept staring at me with those weird eyes. No wonder Rin was creeped out. "I haven't had dinner yet, see, and I know Rin here is eager to get back to... uh, wherever it was she came from." No answer. I licked my lips again. Maybe try a different tactic? "I actually kind of disappeared from school earlier today. No one's seen me for hours, and people are probably out looking for me right now. Probably the police are searching for me, too," I added, hoping that would get her attention.

"I... see," she finally said. "Evey, was it? What a dear girl you seem to be... It's a shame, though. I can't get rid of my barrier until I've finished what I came here for." There was that gleam in her eyes again.

"And... what did you come here for?" I asked, shifting uncomfortably.

"Well," she gestured to Rin, who was still hiding behind me, "I actually need the blood of a young maiden to finish up a little spell I've been working on."

The blood of a... the... what the heck? Had I heard her correctly? "I... I'm sorry, did you just say you needed the-"

"Only a few drops, darling," she waved a withered hand through the air dismissively. "Just enough to get the magic flowing."

The magic. Right. She was a crazy old woman who was going to use blood to cast a spell. Sure, why not? After the day I'd been having, why shouldn't I run into some lunatic in a cave who believed she was a witch? This nutjob probably thought demons and dragons and zombies were real, too. I rubbed my temples wearily.

"Er... okay..." I decided to humor her. "If I give you, say, a few drops of _my_ blood, you'll take the... barrier thing down? So we can leave?"

She gave a happy nod. "Absolutely, love. Free as birds, you'll be."

I looked around helplessly, then twisted my head so I could look down at Rin. She peered up at me with big, frightened eyes, and then looked longingly towards the grass and trees outside.

Well, that settled it. Give some blood- ugh, she wanted my _blood_ , what a _weirdo_ \- to the 'witch' so Rin and I could get the hell out of Dodge? It sounded like a fair enough trade. A weird trade, to be sure, but I wasn't one to nitpick.

"Alright," I sighed. "What do you want to do- prick my finger, or something?"

She was positively beaming at me. "Just a moment, darling. The magic won't work without the proper ingredients, after all..." With that, she pushed past me- she was surprisingly strong, for an old woman- and started emptying out her pockets onto the ground. Rin and I watched as plants and herbs collected in a pile, along with a some long silver... strings? Strands of hair? I couldn't tell.

She bustled about for a minute, arranging everything to her liking, and then turned to me. She held a little knife- barely the size of a scalpel, really- in one hand. "Alright, now time for the blood. Just a few drops, dear. No need to be frightened." Right. Because people who point knives at you and tell you not to be scared are people you should trust.

I hesitated for another minute, then finally gave a resigned and thoroughly annoyed sigh. I held out my hand, and she poked at my thumb until a few bright red drops of blood had gathered on the scalpel. I winced and rubbed the injury as she turned, stooped, and dragged the little knife in an intricate pattern on the ground. It made an awful, nails-on-a-chalkboard sound and I winced again.

"Sorry, love. Just a bit more." I frowned but dutifully held out my hand again, letting her gather more drops of blood on the blade. Again she bent, but this time she took up the silver stuff- it definitely looked like hair, now that she held it up, and I eyed it curiously- and spread the blood along it, mixing red with silver. I shuddered a little. Gross.

"Mm. Perfect," she purred, rubbing the hair between her wrinkled fingers.

This was so, _so_ beyond weird. Plus, I was starving, and Rin was still scared and hiding behind me. It was definitely time to get out of this cave. "Now what?" I snapped, my patience all but gone.

"Silence!" she snarled, whirling suddenly to give me a fierce glare with her bloodshot eyes. I stepped back, shocked by the change that had come over her voice and expression."Do not interrupt!"

She knelt, then and began to wave her hands in funny circles over the pile of blood, hair, and plants. Weird. Weird weird weird. But then... was it my imagination, or was light coming from the pile? I didn't have time to wonder, because the old woman suddenly started to chant in a raspy hiss.

 _"I bind thee, mortal woman, to my most hated enemy. I twine your soul with his; let blood be bonded, let spirit cleave to spirit. Let death claim two victims when given one. This I decree; one shall fall, and neither shall rise again."_

Alright, well, she was clearly insane. She could stand around and chant and draw circles in blood all she wanted, I was _so_ out of here. Crazy grandma. Wannabe witch. Whatever she was.

Although, it was admittedly pretty freaky when she finished her little chant and, out of nowhere, the hair and blood on the ground all burst into flame and started shooting sparks in every direction. And I swear I felt a little jolt of electricity zap me. Yeah, that was weird. It was definitely time to go.

I crept backwards. The old lady had started laughing wildly- see? totally bonkers- when her little pile of crap had caught on fire, and she was now ignoring me. I snatched Rin's hand and started pulling her towards the cave entrance.

We hurried along, Rin practically clinging to me, and I met the 'barrier' by punching it squarely in its... er, face? Middle? I don't know, it's a barrier, and the point is I punched it. Which hurt like you wouldn't believe, but felt kind of satisfying, too. The punch was followed by a kick, and then I just started pounding on it with both fists. "Come on, you stupid thing! Get out of the way! Move! _Move_!" I probably looked- and sounded- like a little kid throwing a tantrum, but... hey, if you were locked in a cave in the middle of the night with a crazy old woman who thinks setting your blood on fire is fun, you'd probably being throwing a hissy fit, too.

An evil- and I mean _evil_ , as in sinister, diabolical, and totally blood-chilling- cackle came from behind us. "Oh, no, dearie." I whipped around, shoving Rin behind me. The old woman had risen and was holding... geez, was that a meat cleaver? Where the hell had she gotten a meat cleaver? Could this situation suck any worse? "You are not leaving just yet."

"You..." my voice came out as a squeak. It was a meat cleaver, okay? I think a squeak or two was forgivable; this situation was _literally_ turning into a scene straight out of a horror movie. I ground my teeth together and mentally ordered myself to be brave. "You said we could go after your little... ritual. You promised."

She smiled, revealing brown and crooked teeth. "Yes, darling, I did promise. But, you see, I lied."

I licked my lips. Rin, clinging to my hips and hiding her face into the back of my shirt, whimpered. "You... _you_..." I was so angry, and so terrified, that I couldn't even form words.

"It's nothing personal, darling. You see," she came a step closer, brandishing that big knife, but with her voice as casual as if she was talking about the weather, "I needed someone to help me carry out my little curse. Someone defenseless, preferably." She flashed me another smile.

Okay, I needed to keep calm. I knew that. Yes, this was insanely creepy. And weird. And totally a scene from about fifty different slasher films. I growled in the back of my throat- I wanted, _needed_ , to be angry, not scared. Fear wasn't going to help me any, not if I was going to have to actually keep this psychopath from chopping us up into little pieces. I kind of doubted Rin would be much help, so this was up to me. I needed to get both of us out of here alive.

It was one little old lady. Meat cleaver aside, she was nothing I should have been scared of. I glanced around, looking for something I could use as a weapon. My backpack was nice and heavy, but it was too far away. There weren't any rocks on the ground close enough for me to grab. So that left... uh, not much. Growling again, I slipped out of one of my shoes and hefted it. It wasn't much of a weapon, but it had a hard sole, so if would have to do.

"Stay away from us!" I snarled, trying to sound fearsome.

She paused in her slow advance, regarding my 'weapon' with a chuckle. "You're a brave little thing, aren't you? It's almost a shame..." She looked sad for a moment, but then something hardened in her expression and she bared her rotten teeth at me. "But bravery won't save you, girl! That beast of a demon must die, and you're as good a sacrifice as that little brat would have been!"

I couldn't even register what she was saying. She was _insane_ ; there was no point in listening, in trying to reason with her. I braced myself, clenching the shoe in both hands and wielding it like... well, like a baseball bat, actually, which felt kind of awkward. No, I have never been in a fight before, and no, I have never used my shoe as a weapon before. I'm new at this, in case you couldn't tell.

I didn't have much time to ponder how best to bludgeon someone to death with a shoe; not a second after I had lifted it, she lunged at me and slashed with that big knife. I swung out in front of me with the shoe, knocking her blade to the side but earning myself a nasty gash on one wrist as the knife glanced off of it. She staggered a bit, and I let go of the shoe with one hand so I could push Rin away. She didn't need the encouragement; she had already darted to one side and was making a beeline for the far side of the cave.

The old hag righted herself and snarled at me, raising the blade to swing again. Rather than risk getting cut once more, I skipped backwards- smacking hard against that stupid barrier- and then dove to the side. A sharp cry rang out behind me, and I turned just in time to see a fist-sized rock bounce to the ground. Rin was already grabbing another one. If we lived through this, I was going to buy her an unholy amount of candy as payback.

"Die! You must die!" the old woman shrieked, lunging at me again. I had just enough time to see the maddened, desperate look in her bloodshot eyes and see the silver glint of her knife before the room exploded.

Rocks shattered beneath my feet, and I was thrown backwards from the momentum of a large white blur that bulldozed into my assailant. My head hit rock- for the second time today, if anyone's keeping count- and the shoe dropped out of my bloody hand. I slid to the ground, dazed but trying unsuccessfully to right myself.

Strange sounds overwhelmed me- the old woman shrieking in pain, then in rage; a furious, animal-like snarling, and, strangest of all, the sound of Rin cheering joyfully. I staggered to my feet, and the room stopped spinning just in time for me to see the old woman disappear in a flash of blinding white light. When my eyes readjusted to the cave's gloom, she had left without a trace.

"Oh... thank goodness," I moaned, falling to my knees once again. I pressed my throbbing head against the cold stone ground, fighting back the sudden and overwhelming urge to throw up.

"Lord Sesshomaru!" I head my rock-throwing friend exclaim happily. "Rin knew you would come! You _always_ come when Rin is in danger!"

Oh, so that was the guy she had mentioned earlier? Lord... geez, sometimes I really hate this language and its long, confusing names. They're interesting, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I just want to meet a 'Bob' or a 'Joe.' Something easy to remember, you know? Is that really too much to ask?

There was a moment of silence, and once I was more or less sure that my lunch was not going to make an appearance on the cave floor I lifted my head to thank our savior. Rin was standing a few feet away, smiling at me, and beside her stood...

I gasped audibly. He was... _surreal_. Tall, broad, with the most beautiful white clothes. Long hair like spun silver, eyes like two pools of liquid gold... I drank in the sight of him, shocked and awestruck. I tried several times to say something- 'thank you,' 'nice timing,' you know, something along those lines- but I couldn't seem to find my voice. And then, when I finally managed to form words, they were embarrassing and... uh, slightly lame. I blame my numerous blows to the head and the fact that I had just survived a slasher film. Plus lack of sleep. And lack of food. And blood loss. It's a miracle I managed to say anything, really, so let's not nitpick about the logic of what I actually asked him.

" _Are you an angel_?"

* * *

Author's Note: Kind of a cheesy ending, I know, but don't worry- Evey will learn in the next chapter that Sesshomaru is not, in fact, anything close to an angel. I hope you have enjoyed this chapter, and please leave a review!


	3. Realization

**Author's Note:** This chapter is a bit shorter than the previous one, but hopefully is still enjoyable. Thank you very much to those of you who favorited this story or added it to their following list; you made me very happy by doing so!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Inuyasha.

Chapter 3: Realization

Okay, so it wasn't a great way to make a first impression. But you have to admit, he did _look_ kind of... er, angelic. All white and shiny, with that unreal silver hair. Plus he had just saved me from certain death, so I think that my automatic assumption that he was some kind of holy avenger can be understood.

At second glance, however, I wasn't so sure. He was glaring at me, for one thing, and I'm pretty sure angels don't glare. He was also wearing... armor? And was that a belt with swords on it? And draped over his right shoulder was a... a giant... fluffy... thing.

I was trying to fight back my embarrassed blush. Okay, maybe not an angel. Some kind of cross-dressing supermodel, perhaps? Seriously, the guy could have been one of those models for hair commercials. You know, the one's that get sprayed with water while their hair is swinging around in slow-motion. Yeah, he would've been perfect for that.

Aaand I was blushing even harder now. I scrambled to my feet, throwing out one hand to steady myself, and stammered, "I-I mean... er, thank you so much. For saving us, I mean. Th-thank you."

The glare was gone, replaced by a look of total indifference. He didn't answer me, and Rin said, "Lord Sesshomaru, this is Evey. She is very brave; she kept Rin safe from the evil witch."

The cross-dresser- Sesshomaru- looked down at her, then slid his gaze back to me. It was kind of unnerving; his eyes, while undeniably beautiful- was he wearing contacts? Had to be, no one's eyes looked like _that_ all on their own- were cold and hard, and I was pretty sure he was trying to bore a hole in me with them.

"Uh... yeah." I shifted uncomfortably. He was still staring. I scratched the back of my head and tried to come up with something to say. "Hey, could I use your cell phone? I left mine in my school locker, and we should really call 911." No answer. "Um... or maybe is there a payphone nearby? Or a police station?" No answer. Just staring. I licked my lips. "We really need to alert the authorities. I mean, that old lady was trying to _kill_ us!"

"She is no longer a threat." Ah, he speaks! It wasn't much of a statement- 'she is no longer a threat?' Who did he think he was, Batman? No one talked like that! He did have a nice voice, though. Quiet and deep. I bet he could sing like nobody's business.

"Well... yeah, you scared her off an all, but she should still be arrested," I explained slowly. "Seriously, that nutjob was trying to _fillet_ me."

He ignored me and looked down at Rin. "Rin. What did this woman want with you?"

The little girl spread her hands out wide, shrugging. "Rin does not know, Lord Sesshomaru. One moment Rin was sleeping with Ah-Un, and then when she woke up she was trapped in this cave." She turned to me, beaming. "And then Evey came to help Rin! She was so brave!"

I flushed again. "Er... don't mention it. You weren't so bad yourself." I smiled at her. "And you totally saved my butt with that rock!" She clapped her hands together and gave a dainty little bow, which made me giggle.

Sesshomaru was still looking at Rin. "She gave no explanation for your capture?"

Rin thought for a moment, and I supplied, "She did mention something about... uh, wanting to destroy her enemy, or something. She was a total wackjob." I snorted. "She was actually try to cast a _spell_! Can you believe that?"

He turned those unnerving eyes towards me. "What was the nature of this spell?"

What was the... oh no, this guy was crazy, too! "Um... it was a _spell_ ," I enunciated each word patiently, as if I was talking to a child. Magic wasn't real, dude.

He regarded me silently for a long minute. Then, slowly, one silver eyebrow arched. "Yes. What was it's purpose?"

It's purpose. The _magic spell's purpose._ Yeah, sure, because grandma psycho had been an actual witch, casting actual spells. I rolled my eyes and decided that I might as well humor him. "Well, let's see... she said something about killing her mortal enemy. And... tying souls together. And she... decreed... something," I floundered helplessly. He said nothing. "I'm sorry, okay! I wasn't so much paying attention to her as I was trying to get Rin and me out of here." Silence. I rubbed the back of my head and tried to think of anything else important to say. "Um... she didn't touch Rin," I offered.

He inclined his head ever so slightly and, after another long pause, rumbled, "You bear the scent of Inuyasha's miko. In return for your actions toward Rin, I will return you to him."

I blinked. Huh? I smelled like... someone? "Um... what? I don't know what an Inuyasha is... o-or a miko. Uh, I'm an American, in case you couldn't tell- Japanese is my second language, and sometimes I get confused about the words..."

Rin nodded solemnly. "Evey is from United States, Lord Sesshomaru. That is why she looks like a demon and uses strange words."

Again with the demon stuff? Geez, these two were weird. Not in a meat-cleaver-wielding, set-piles-of-blood-on-fire way, but still pretty odd. And exactly what strange words was I using?

"Hn." Sesshomaru regarded me for another moment. "You do not know Inuyasha?" I shook my head. It was a person, judging from how he was using the word, but I'd never heard the name before.

"You could take me towards town," I suggested hopefully. Once I found something familiar- the school, some houses, a street I recognized- I would be able to find my way back home. Although, I thought with a sense of dread, I had been getting a definite 'Alice-in-Wonderland' vibe from this place for a while. Like I was somewhere... else. Not home. I gulped audibly. But that was impossible. I just needed to get someplace familiar.

He seemed to be considering my request. "I got lost earlier," I explained, "And I'm not really sure how to get back home. But I'm sure if you took me back to a place I recognized, I'd be able to find my bearings." He kept looking at me with those cold eyes, and I thought I saw one corner of his mouth turn ever so slightly downwards. "Or... or if there's a police station nearby... or a taxi service, maybe? Even, like, a highway, or something..." He wasn't going to just leave me alone in this cave, was he?

Rin tugged on one leg of his white pants. "Please, Lord Sesshomaru? Lady Evey got hurt trying to protect Rin. We cannot leave her all by herself..."

He gave the child a glance, I and swear his expression softened just a bit. "Very well. Come." And with that, he turned on one heel and headed out of the cave.

"Wait! I cried. He didn't. "Watch out for the..." Huh. No barrier- he just walked right out, and Rin trotted along after him. I guess when the old lady had vanished, her little invisible wall had left, too. "Nevermind," I muttered to myself, then scurried over to collect my backpack from the ground. I hefted it onto my shoulders, stooped to pull my shoe-weapon back on, and then started to run after them. "Hey, slow down!" He didn't. Geez, Mr. Cross-Dresser was kind of rude. And seriously, what was with the clothes and armor? And the long silver hair? And the tattoos on his face? Was he part of a traveling circus, or something? I frowned, trying to come up with a rational explanation for all the weird things that had happened in the past six hours, and hurried after the pair.

By the time I had caught up, Sesshomaru had reached the treeline and Rin was prancing along behind him, all signs of fear and worry erased from her demeanor. She grinned up at me as I fell into step beside her. "Do you live in the human village, Evey? Rin would love to come and visit you sometime..."

The... _human_ village? As opposed to what, the chipmunk village? I had taken an official liking to Rin, don't get me wrong, but some of the things she'd being saying were just so strange.

I chose to ignore the weirdness of her question and answered, "Yeah, but only for the rest of the semester. I have a nice little studio apartment all to myself." She gave me a mystified look, and I elaborated, "I'm an exchange student for the Fall semester. The school pays my rent, so long as I attend all my classes and keep my grades up."

She furrowed her brow, still appearing quite baffled. I glanced towards Sesshomaru, wondering if he could help put my situation into context for her, but he was walking a short ways ahead and seemed to be ignoring us.

Finally Rin said, "Does everyone in United States speak like you, Evey?"

"Er..." I wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. I rubbed the back of my head. "I guess... maybe I'm getting some of my translations wrong. I'm not used to speaking Japanese all the time," I admitted, "So maybe I'm not using all the right words. I'm sorry."

She brightened. "It's okay. Rin," she winced, " _I_ , need to correct my words sometimes, too. Master Jaken always tells Rin to use... tells _me_ to use... um..." she bit down on her bottom lip, forehead and nose scrunched up in thought. "First person!" She announced triumphantly after a moment. "That is what he says is el-o-quent," she enunciated the word carefully, and I couldn't help but smile.

"Aw. He sounds like a good teacher."

She wrinkled her nose. "Master Jaken tries to boss Rin around all the time. And he is never any fun to play with." She thought for a moment. "But Master Jaken does teach Rin some things. And sometimes he is very nice to Rin."

I smiled, and we continued on for a while in silence. The moon had been steadily rising, and I stifled a yawn while wondering what time it was. As I raised my hand to cover my mouth, I caught sight of a thick smear of blood along my forearm.

"Oh," I gasped, peering at it. That was where the old lady had slashed at me with her knife... in all the excitement, I had completely forgotten about my injury. Not that it was too bad- it must have stopped bleeding a while ago, because the blood had all dried. It did sting a bit, though.

Still. All things considered, our little adventure in the cave could have gone much, much worse. A gash on the arm was small potatoes; I was lucky. I shivered and, trying not to think about the event, and called to the silent white figure ahead of me, "Hey, um, Sesshomaru. Do you happen to have a first-aid kit or something?" I tried to sound lighthearted. "Our stab-happy friend back there cut me, and my arm's kind of hurting."

I waited for a minute for him to answer. He didn't. I tried again. "Or... maybe do you have some aspirin?" No response. "Ibuprofen?" No response. "Uh... Tylenol?" No response. Hmm... was he being rude, or could he not hear me? I narrowed my eyes and called out, sure to get a reaction this time,"How about some Viagra?" Nope, still nothing. Maybe he was hard of hearing, or something.

I jogged up beside him. "Hey." I tilted my head up and slightly to the side, offering him a friendly smile. He kept staring straight ahead. "Uh... did you-"

"Your wound is minor."

I blinked, taken aback. So he _had_ heard me! Which meant... well, it actually meant that he had been ignoring me, which was just plain rude. And now he was making light of my very serious battle scar, which made him twice as rude! I scowled and retorted sarcastically, "Gee, thanks for you concern! I got this cut trying to keep your daughter safe, you know- the least you could do is say thank you!"

He spared me a side-long glance, his expression totally unreadable. And then he looked straight ahead again and continued ignoring me. I reddened angrily and sputtered something incoherent, then stomped back to walk beside Rin.

"Lord Sesshomaru is not Rin's father," she said when I reached her.

"Huh?" I blinked down at her. "I assumed... er, sorry." I guess that made sense- they looked and acted absolutely nothing alike. I flushed even more deeply.

"Rin's parents died a long time ago," she continued solemnly, "But now Rin has Lord Sesshomaru."

My angry demeanor wilted- really, how can you stay mad when a little girl starts talking about her parents' death? "I'm really sorry to hear that, Rin. But, um," I shot another glance towards her... her guardian, I guessed was the right name for him, and said, "Lord Sesshomaru seems to take pretty good care of you."

"Oh, yes!" She bobbed her head happily. "Rin has nothing to be afraid of when she is with Lord Sesshomaru!"

I made a 'hm' noise and then leaned down a bit, dropping my voice to a whisper. "Uh, Rin... does he not like me for some reason?"

"Why do you think that, Evey?"

Wasn't it obvious? He was basically ignoring me, and the few things he _had_ said to me had been pretty rude. "Well, he doesn't seem to want to talk to me..."

She smiled again. "Lord Sesshomaru never talks very much." She lowered her voice conspiratorially, "Rin thinks it is because he must be scary sometimes, and if he is ever nice then people will not be so afraid of him. After Lord Sesshomaru was nice to Rin, she was never afraid of him again!"

Well, that was certainly an... interesting... answer. Why on earth did the guy need to be 'scary?' Was he some kind of... law enforcement agent? A mob boss? My eyes widened. Maybe he actually _was B_ atman... I snickered at the thought.

"Well," I whispered back, covering my mouth with one hand, "He is definitely taking the whole 'strong and silent' thing to a whole new level."

Rin smiled, as did I, and- what the... he had just tilted his head to the side and _looked_ at me! And i _swear_ he looked annoyed. He couldn't have possibly heard what I had just said, right?

Rin gave a little giggle. "Sorry, Lord Sesshomaru! Rin will stop talking about you."

I blushed as he turned his head back to face forwards and resumed ignoring us. He _couldn't_ have heard us... it just wasn't possible.

Still, I made sure to watch what I said for the next hour or so. Rin kept chattering happily, talking about flowers and pointing out various plants and naming them for me. I made lame conversation, too hungry and worn out to add much to the conversation, but she seemed happy regardless.

The moon hung high in the sky when we crested a small hill and came to the edge of the treeline. Sesshomaru and Rin kept walking, but the sight that lay before us made me stop cold and suck in a sharp breath. Several hundred yards away, lit up by a few scattered campfire and torches, was a village. But not the town I had been living in for the past few weeks. Not with roads and bustling streets and billboards and honking car horns. Oh no, this was nothing like that.

Small but widespread, lit only by fires, and with no house larger than two stories. No automobiles, no signs, no paved roads... _nothing_. I gaped openly, baffled by the scene before me. This was not right. This was not _possible_.

And yet, there it was. Plain as day; two hundred yards away from me was a town that should not have existed. And suddenly, with a rush of both dread and awe, I _got_ it; I understood. The purple light, the eye in the ground. The horrible face with its huge teeth. The strange forest, the barrier, the fire and sparks shooting out after the old woman had cast a spell. The way Rin had looked so confused when I talked about phones and police and taxis. Heck, even the man before me, with his swords and armor, started to make sense.

I stood shaking for a moment, trying to digest the prospect of what had happened to me. Somehow, someway, I was... elsewhere. Another world, or another time. I took a deep breath. "Toto," I whispered, forcing my feet to move again, "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore."

* * *

I know, I know, it's a cheesy last line for this chapter. But it felt right, y'know? I hope anyone reading this has enjoyed themselves so far, and please feel free to click that conspicuous button at the bottom of the page and leave a review!


	4. A Whole New World

**Disclaimer:** Nope, I still don't own Inuyasha.

Chapter 4: A Whole New World

I followed Sesshomaru and Rin down the hill and into the village, muttering "This is not possible, this is _so_ not possible" with every step. He stopped near a solidly built wooden lodge and turned those intense eyes on me as I shuffled closer.

"Um," I squeaked nervously as he turned away, totally indifferent to me. I was definitely not prepared to be left alone in this strange place. I swallowed tightly.

"Rin will miss you, Evey," said a little voice at me side. I looked down and saw that she was giving me a sad smile.

"Aw... hey, we'll see each other again. Do you... do you live around here?" I asked hopefully.

She shook her head, long hair waving from side to side. "Lord Sesshomaru never stays in one place for very long. And Rin is always by his side."

"O-oh." I swallowed again. Please don't leave me alone here, _please_ don't leave me alone here...

Rin wrapped her arms around my thighs and gave me an awkward, but sweet, hug. I bent a little so I could return the embrace.

"Goodbye, Evey. Rin will miss you," she said again.

"Yeah," I said, my voice thick with fear and sorrow. I clenched my jaw and forced back the sudden urge to cry. I'd just met her a few short hours ago, after all- it was ridiculous to be so sad about parting ways with someone I barely knew. "I'll miss you too, Rin. Take good care of your Lord Sesshomaru, okay?" I gave her a little smile. She grinned back.

"Um, and th-thank you, Lord Sesshomaru," I added hesitantly. "I really appreciate your help." He was facing the forest, ignoring me. Again. I sighed and tousled the top of Rin's hair gently. "See ya, kiddo."

Sesshomaru had started walking away from us, following the path back out of the village. Rin gave me another tight embrace, then turned to follow him. She turned and waved at me, shouting "Goodbye!" again every few seconds. I couldn't help but smile a little bit as I watched them go. What an odd pair.

When they had disappeared back into the forest, I heaved a deep sigh and turned to examine the hut that Sesshomaru had dropped me off at. It was... er, nice? Kind of nondescript, but it looked okay. For a hut. For a 16th century _hut_.

"This is so not possible," I muttered again. After a long minute of just standing there and staring at the door like a moron, I finally gathered up enough courage to raise my hand and knock.

* * *

So Kaede was actually pretty cool. She was short and heavy and had kind of a grandmotherly air about her. Grandmotherly minus the badass eye patch and the fact that she was, apparently, a priestess who battled and destroyed demons on a semi-regular basis. According to her, that is.

I hadn't quite decided if she was nuts or not. She certainly didn't seem insane- at least, not in the way the other old lady had been. Stabby had tried to... well, _stab_ me, whereas Kaede had settled for making me a bowl of nice hot porridge. So far, I much preferred Kaede.

I had scarfed down my first bowl- burning my tongue, throat, and probably a few internal organs, but I was too hungry to care- and was starting on my second when she started to make conversation.

"Tell me, child. Ye wear the same garb as young Kagome, but ye do not resemble her in the least."

My heart leaped into my throat and I nearly dropped the bowl. "You know Kagome?" I exclaimed. "Kagome Higurashi?"

Kaede nodded. "Aye, child. Kagome left this village yesterday afternoon with Inuyasha and the others." My face fell, and she added, "Fear not. I believe they did not intend to be gone lone; it is likely that they will return tomorrow."

I rubbed my arms. "I hope so. I saw Kagome go into the sacred Higurashi shrine, but when I followed her inside she had disappeared. And then when I went to see if she was in the well, this… this _face_ appeared, and I fell and hit my head. When I woke up, she was gone."

She pursed her thin lips thoughtfully. "Hm. 'Tis indeed a strange story. Tell me, what else has happened to you since you came to this place?"

I told her about Rin, the barrier, the old lady, and Sesshomaru, taking occasional bites of food, and she listened intently. When I reached the end of my story she said, "Methinks it was not a mere old woman who assaulted you. If she escaped Lord Sesshomaru's attack, she must have been more than she appeared to be." She continued stoking. "Or perhaps she had very powerful magic at her disposal."

I set the now-empty bowl aside and dropped my head into my hands with a sigh, thinking back to that awful cave. "Yeah, well, she cast some kind of curse on me. Or at least, she _said_ it was a curse. But I don't feel any different."

Kaede paused. "A curse, you say? This is grave news, child. Tell me, what did this curse of hers entail?"

I furrowed my brow, trying once again to remember what the old hag had been chanting. I hadn't had much luck recalling it earlier- lack of sleep and numerous head wounds, remember?- and I wasn't much more successful now. "I really don't remember most of it. There was something about... binding me to her enemy, or tying my spirit to his. And, uh... killing two people at once. Yeah, she said something about that, but it didn't make any sense."

Kaede was gravely silent for a minute. Then she said slowly, "Child, I am afraid it makes perfect sense."

"Huh?"

"I have heard of such curses being cast before, but they are very rare. It seems as though this witch has a powerful enemy, one whom she cannot defeat. So she has bound ye to him, and in taking your life he would have died as well."

I blinked. "What? Nuh-uh, no way! That's not possible!"

She gave me a sad look. "I am afraid it is all too possible, child."

"But... but... but that's not _fair_!" I whined. "I was just minding my own business, trying to keep Rin safe from that stupid, ugly old-"

"Rin?" Kaede straightened abruptly. "Wait a moment- did you say that the human child was captured _before_ you?"

I slumped back against the wall, pouting. "Yeah. That... that... _bitch_... had her trapped in the cave. I went in to help her; that's how I got dragged into this whole mess."

"Nay, child. Methinks it was the demonic face you mentioned that got you... ah, 'dragged into this mess.'" I shivered a bit. I was still having trouble wrapping my head around this. Demonic... as in, _demon_ , as in, demons were real. As was magic, apparently, and goodness knows what else. Santa Claus and the freaking Easter Bunny were probably wandering around out in that woods somewhere, with a herd of unicorns in tow. And speaking of demons, I had apparently but walking around with one all night, totally oblivious. I shuddered.

Kaede continued thoughtfully, "However, it is strange than young Rin was trapped before you. Perhaps the witch's curse was meant for the child?"

I considered that for a minute. "You know, that actually makes sense." Well, as much as _any_ of this weirdness could make sense. "The old lady, she said that, er, 'I would do just as well as the brat.'" I shivered again. "I guess she meant Rin. Poor kid."

Kaede had risen to her feet, and was now pacing back and forth, hands clasped behind her back. "So the witch chose Rin as the victim of her curse," she mused out loud. "Tell me- can you remember anything else about the spell? More words, or the symbols she drew? Or her ingredients, perhaps?"

I scrunched up my face. "Well... she drew a funny circle on the ground with my blood." Still so, _so_ gross. On the creepy scale, my meat-cleaver wielding friend was right up there with Hannibal and Jigsaw. I grimaced. "Oh, and she did the nastiest thing. There was this, like, _hair_ , and she rubbed my blood all over it. Super creepy, am I right?"

Kaede fixed her good eye on me. "And what color was this hair?"

"Kind of silver-white. Really long, too." A realization hit me. "Could that be the person she... er, 'bound' me to? Whoever's hair that was?"

"Aye. And I think," she stopped pacing and rubbed her chin, "It is safe to assume that the true target of this curse may have been Lord Sesshomaru."

"Sesshomaru?" I repeated. Actually, now that she mentioned it, the hair on the ground _had_ looked like it might have been his.

She nodded again. "Perhaps. Without knowing anything more than what you have told me, it is impossible to say for sure who it is ye have been tied to. But as Lord Sesshomaru was involved, and as young Rin was chosen before ye, I think it all too likely that he is the one."

I blew a sigh and slumped back against the wall again. Okay, so... now what? What exactly was I supposed to do with this information?

"It is late," Kaede said after a long silence. "I've a spare cot, here- and I've no doubt that ye are tired after all ye have been through." Understatement of the _year,_ lady. "Rest. I will think on what must be done about this curse of yours. There may be ways to remove it."

"Such as?" I asked hopefully.

She shook her head. "I know not. But I will think on it, and I am certain that Kagome will do everything in her power to aid you." She motioned to the far side of the room, where some bedding- really just a few blankets scattered on the floor, but I sure wasn't going to complain- lay. "Rest, child. We will address your problem further in the morning."

I nodded and, stifling a yawn, went and crawled into the makeshift bed. I mumbled some sleepy but heartfelt thanks to my hostess, and was asleep in seconds.

* * *

I awoke to the sound of birds chirping and villagers talking amiably. I cracked open my eyes and squinted into the sunlight pouring in through the room's sole window, remembering vaguely the events of last night. The well, Rin, the witch, the curse, Sesshomaru... and Kaede. I sat up, wondering sleepily where she was, when I heard her soft voice from outside.

I rose, stretched, and yawned, then headed for the door. Opening it, I was greeted by the sight of sunlit grass and smooth dirt roads, distant trees blowing in the wind... and, just a few yards away, Kaede and Kagome stood. They seemed to be having a very serious conversation, but upon seeing me Kagome paused and met my eyes.

"Evey!" she cried, looking totally shocked. "Kaede said you'd shown up in the village last night. I almost didn't believe it!"

"Kagome!" I rushed forward to hug her. "I'm so happy to see you! You wouldn't _believe_ the day I've had! Or maybe you would, since you spend so much time here! This place is _nuts_!" I gushed.

"Kagome, how could you have let someone from your time follow you through the well?" snapped a… well, I wasn't really sure what he was. Tall and muscular, with bright golden eyes and wild silver hair. And… er, doggy ears. I gaped openly.

"No _way_ ," I whispered, slowly reaching out one hand and leaning towards him. Those could _not_ be his real ears, nuh-uh, but _oh my gosh they were so fuzzy and soft_!

"Hey!" he batted my hand away. "What gives?!"

Kagome giggled. "Calm down, Inuyasha. I did the same thing when I first met you, remember?"

My eyes widened. "'Inuyasha'? Ohh. So you're who Sesshomaru was talking about."

Abruptly dog-man's attention was fixed on me. "What was that about Sesshomaru?"

I guess they knew each other? "It was nothing. He mentioned your name, and something called a 'miko,' but I didn't really follow what he was saying." I shrugged nonchalantly.

"Evey," Kagome had turned suddenly very serious, too, "What where you doing with Lord Sesshomaru?"

Inuyasha grunted. "And more importantly, how did you survive meeting the guy?"

"Well…" I had better start from the beginning, I supposed. I took a deep breath. "I saw you go into the shrine, Kagome, and when I tried to find out where you'd disappeared to I saw this… this… weird eye thing looking at me from the bottom of the well. And then when I tried to climb out, this awful face appeared out of nowhere and startled me, so I fell in. I hit my head and got knocked out, and then when I woke up you were gone and I didn't know where I was."

Kagome nodded, listening intently. Inuyasha appeared to be scanning the distant treeline, but I got the feeling that he was listening, too.

I continued. "So, uh, then things got weird. I was walking through the woods, trying to figure out where I was, when I heard this little girl named Rin calling for help. She was trapped in a cave, and like a total moron I got trapped right along with her. Then this old lady showed up, and she was all 'I'm so nice, if you let me poke you with my little knife I'll let you leave,' so I was like 'Yeah sure, I'm totally cool with this.' But of course she turned out of be a total whackjob- she cast some kind of curse on me, and then when Rin and I tried to leave she pulled this freaking huge butcher knife out of nowhere and tried to murder us."

Kagome's eyes were wide. "How did you escape?"

"Well, I was fending her off with my shoe- and please, you two, don't ever think that a shoe is a good weapon to bring to a knife fight, because it is just so _not_ \- and Rin was throwing rocks at her, and basically we were done for. But then Sesshomaru showed up, and Stabby zapped outta there pretty quick. I guess she was scared of him."

Inuyasha's eyes were fixed on me, now. I guess I had his full attention.

"So he's not exactly a barrel of laughs, but he did offer to take me to 'Inuyasha and his miko,'" I did my best Sesshomaru impression, which was basically just a monotone, "in exchange for how I had protected Rin. Of course I had no idea who Inuyasha was or what a miko was- what is a miko, anyways?"

"It means priestess," Kagome supplied. "He… well, actually he meant me, I think. I have some spiritual powers. They're not much-" she dipped her head humbly, "But I can purify some demons in battle."

I gave her a funny look. Right. Kagome Higurashi was some kind of holy, demon-battling warrior. Well, heck, why not? The was a dog-man standing two feet away from me- a cursed time-traveler- and we all currently stood in the middle of Feudal Japan. Stranger things have happened. I can't think of any right now, but I'm pretty sure they have.

"Okay, sure. Well, anywho, I asked if he could take me back to town instead. I don't think he actually wanted to- the guy's kind of rude- but Rin practically begged him for me, so he said he would. And, well," I spread my hands out wide, "Here I am."

Kagome gave a long, low whistle. "Wow. You're lucky to be alive, Evey."

I waved a hand dismissively. "What, 'cause of the old witch? Please, I could have taken her." In my dreams, that is…

"No- well, yes, you're lucky she didn't hurt you, either. But I meant when you met Sesshomaru. He, uh," she hesitated.

Inuyasha snorted again. "He's a cold-blooded bastard, that's what he is. And he hates humans. That's why you're lucky to be alive."

"Oh." I wasn't really sure how to respond to that. "Well, um… Rin seemed really nice. He can't be all that bad if he keeps her around," I offered.

Kagome gave a slow nod. "I've actually wondered about Rin a lot. I only met her once, but she seemed so sweet and innocent… it just doesn't make sense that Sesshomaru protects her. Unless he's not as cold-hearted as he seems," she added thoughtfully.

"Feh! He probably uses her as demon bait!" Apparently Inuyasha didn't share Kagome's opinion of my not-so-angelic, cross-dressing-acquaintance. "The guy's just a power-hungry demon, the same as the rest of them."

"Inuyasha," Kagome said gently, "Don't forget that you and your father are both a lot different than most demons. Maybe Sesshomaru is, too."

"'You're father'?" I repeated. "Wait, does that mean… are you a demon, too?" I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. Everyone and their dog was something magical or otherworldly around here. Besides, he had doggy ears. How many average people just so happen to have doggy ears?

"I'm a half-demon. And I'm nothing like Sesshomaru, Kagome!"

"Half-demon?" I repeated dumbly.

"Inuyasha's mother was a human woman," Kagome explained. "And Sesshomaru is Inuyasha's half-brother. Except that Sesshomaru is a full demon."

"He's your brother?!" I exclaimed. This was too weird.

" _Half_ -brother," Inuyasha spat, and then he actually did spit onto the dirt beneath us. "And like I said, I'm nothing like that bastard."

No kidding. Sesshomaru had barely said two words to me; Inuyasha seemed kind of loud and brash, in comparison.

"Hey, Evey," Kagome sounded suddenly very worried, "You didn't say anything to Sesshomaru about the well, did you? Or about our time period?"

"Umm…" I chewed my lower lip and scrunched up my forehead, trying to recall all of my babbling from last night. "Let's see… I asked him if I could use his phone, or is there was a police station or a taxi service somewhere close by. And I mentioned the United States a few times. I think that's it."

"Are you sure? Nothing about the well?"

"Nope, I don't think so."

My friend breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. Sesshomaru's honorable and all, I guess-"

" _Honorable_? You do remember what the guy's like, don't you?" Inuyasha interrupted, folding his arms across his chest.

Kagome rolled her eyes. "He' s a ruthless demon, Inuyasha, but he does seem have more honor than most of them. Even you have to admit that."

"I ain't admitting nothing!"

"Anyways," she continued, ignoring him, "Despite the fact that he protects Rin, and he's actually saved my life a few times, he's still an extremely powerful demon. If he ever learned about the well, he might try to use it." She shuddered. "I hate to think of all the damage he could do if he got loose in our time. Tokyo doesn't exactly have experience dealing with rampaging demon lords, you know?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I get it. Well don't worry, he probably didn't even understand half of what I was saying last night, and I definitely didn't mention the well."

"Speaking of which..." Inuyasha interrupted, folding his arms again, "I think it's about time we send you back to where you came from."

Kagome shifted. "Are you sure that's a good idea, Inuyasha? Kaede," she glanced at the elderly priestess, who had wandered a short distance away and was speaking to some women, "Said that maybe using the well was a bad idea."

Inuyasha grunted again and I suggested, "I think it's worth a try. I mean, no offense, but I don't think I want to stay here any longer than I have to. Plus with the whole 'magic spell' thing..."

"I don't think jumping through time could injure whoever it is you're bound to," Inuyasha said confidently. "Besides, whoever it is probably deserves whatever they've got coming to them."

I frowned at that. So Kaede had explained that I was magically tied to someone... but she hadn't mentioned who she thought if might be? Strange. I shot her a curious look, but she had moved farther away and was not paying any attention to us.

"Inuyasha," Kagome was frowning, too. "We don't know that. Evey said this witch was evil and insane- her victim might be totally innocent, for all we know."

"That may be," I cut in, "But I think Inuyasha was right; me jumping back into the well probably wouldn't even effect them at all. I mean, why would it?"

"Exactly." Inuyasha turned on his heel and began walking towards the forest. "Now come on, you two- we have more important things to do than stand around and wonder whether or not this will work."

Kagome didn't look convinced. "I'm sure it'll be okay," I said, tugging her after the half-demon. "Kaede said the spell was supposed to kill him- or her- if I died, too. And I won't be dying when I jump in the well, so probably nothing will happen."

"Yeah, I guess so..." she still didn't look to happy, but after a few moments of walking she perked up a bit. "I guess this will give you a chance to meet the rest of the gang."

"'Gang?'"

"Yeah." She smiled widely. "Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kilala- they're all waiting near the well. Inuyasha and I just came into the village to get some supplies. As soon as you're back home, we'll continue our quest to recover the shards of the Shikon Jewel."

"The... what?"

"It's... well, it's a really long story, actually. Let's just say that being in the Feudal Era has kept me pretty busy," she said wryly.

I snorted. "I bet. I mean, I swear I can't walk two feet without running into something totally outrageous." Like a demon, a witch, a priestess, and a half-demon with dog ears. I couldn't help but smile a bit, too. "I guess this place seems pretty exciting. But, uh, I think I prefer the warmth and safety of the twenty-first century, thank you very much."

My friend gave me another reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Evey. Before you know it, this place will be nothing but a distant memory."

I saw Inuyasha come to a stop a short ways ahead, and through the trees I could make out a small grassy clearing and, in the middle of it, the ancient stone well. I sighed happily, more than ready to put this little adventure behind me.

* * *

 **Author's Note** : This chapter had a pretty slow pace, but don't worry- this marks the end of Evey's 'introduction' into the Feudal Era; now that she knows where she us and what's going one, things will get a bit more exciting! And rest assured, Sesshomaru will be in the next chapter- a little birdie's going to tip him off about his current connection to Evey ;)

Thank you to those of you who reviewed, favorited, or are following this story; it's wonderful to know that people are enjoying it so far! Feel free to leave a review, and also let me know if you have any suggestions or requests for future chapters!


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